Different, Part 1 (Thanks to "Cutting an Artery to Drink Pulse ai" Alliance Leader for the reward)

After word spread that Wei He had broken through to Stone Hide.

Because the truth had been concealed, aside from Old Zheng, no one knew that Wei He's actual breakthrough had come two months earlier.

So although this breakthrough stirred up a slight ripple in the academy, it quickly subsided.

What everyone cared more about now was when the Seven Families Alliance and Hong Family Fort would begin fighting. People inside and outside the city were in a state of panic.

Many wanted to leave, but outside the city was even more chaotic and dangerous. Mountain bandits and savage beasts could be found everywhere. After all, people themselves were a kind of resource.

Once men were caught, they would be sent off as laborers. Women with even a little beauty would be sent to brothels and pleasure houses, while those without looks would still be made into servants.

Some of the crueler ones would simply be seized and turned into jerky.

Within the Outer City, those with the means to flee had mostly already fled. Those left behind either had no way to run or simply could not run.

Early in the morning, Wei He got up and practiced a set of punches. Only then did he wipe away his sweat, eat some coarse-grain porridge and minced-meat scrambled eggs with Second Sister, then hurried toward Old Zheng's place.

Following Old Zheng's instructions, whenever he came to the academy, he was to first go to the small courtyard behind the inner rooms.

When Wei He left the Wei family courtyard, dawn had only just begun to break. From an alley on the right side of the road came the faint sounds of a brawl.

As Wei He passed by, he saw several half-grown youths fighting. One was taking on two alone.

The boy fighting alone shouted loudly and kept scattering huge clouds of lime powder from his hands. The two opposite him howled in pain and staggered back again and again.

But before long, one of the boys on the other side lifted his hand, and a brick flew out, smashing viciously toward him.

The boy scattering lime powder stumbled from the blow. He roared again, wildly flung out more lime powder, then charged forward with another set of blind, reckless punches.

Wei He shook his head slightly inside.

Too crude. That isn't how lime should be used. And the brick should have gone for the head.

His assessment of the new generation of street tyrant youths sank another notch.

Once past the alley, a few general stores along the street had already opened. Their doors were not fully open, though. Wooden barricades stood outside, blocking the entrances and leaving only narrow gaps.

People were passing items through those gaps, bartering goods for goods.

As Wei He passed, he glanced over and saw that these people were not using silver for trade, but small bags filled with unknown items.

He remembered that at first, some had still used copper coins. Now, even silver had vanished.

Even the Inner City had begun using gold and gold notes as currency for transactions.

With one glance, Wei He saw that on the empty street, there were only three shops open in total, and fewer than ten people coming and going.

Trash littered the ground everywhere, with no one cleaning it up.

This place is becoming more and more desolate.

Sighing inwardly, he quickened his pace, turned several corners, and arrived before Huishan Fist Academy.

He took out his key, unlocked the gate, and walked in.

Several people had already arrived in the Outer Court. The moment he entered, he immediately drew their gazes.

Wei He's expression remained calm as he crossed the Outer Court at an unhurried pace.

He could feel the difference in the things contained within those gazes compared to when he had still been at Ox Hide—the same looks cast at him whenever he entered.

Back then, they would merely glance at him once before looking away. Now, their gazes carried a slight weight.

Some were indifferent. Some were unconvinced and unwilling. Some were envious, while others were mild and friendly.

The eyes trained upon him now were much heavier than before.

This was weight.

Wei He looked back at them, and the fellow disciples he met with his gaze all unconsciously lowered their eyes, unwilling to meet his stare.

As he walked into the courtyard, he could clearly feel that wherever he went, the nearby fellow disciples could not help but take notice of his position.

It was different.

Completely different from before.

This was the treatment after a breakthrough. No matter what he did, someone would always unconsciously pay attention to him.

Stone Hide—this was the true core level within Huishan Fist Academy, the highest tier. It was also the level closest to Old Zheng, the one that would make him regard someone differently.

Those at this level had truly opened up a qualitative gap between themselves and the other Outer Court disciples.

Wei He suddenly understood something Old Zheng had told him before.

An elite of Second Stage Qi and Blood could serve as a capable middle-ranking figure even in the Seven Families Alliance.

A middle-ranking figure in the Seven Families Alliance would be upper management in a small gang outside.

"Something bad happened! Yang Zhou, your little brother has been blocked again! It's people from the Thief Gang!"

Suddenly, a ragged half-grown boy rushed to the gate outside and shouted.

A short-haired youth who had been practicing nearby was instantly startled.

"Take me there!" Her voice was crisp and pleasant—she was clearly a girl.

Her face was filthy, however, and her short hair was a wild mess. With a body as skinny and flat as a bean sprout, no one had recognized her as female at all.

"Where are they?" This girl was a newcomer who had joined Huishan Fist Academy only a few days ago. Her name was Yang Zhou.

Wei He had a slight impression of her.

Not because she was a girl, but because Yang Zhou, like him, had come from Rat Alley.

She had also lived in that row of dilapidated single-story houses beside Rat Alley.

Hearing the shout, Wei He also heard the words "Thief Gang." His heart stirred slightly, and he suddenly wondered whether his eldest sister, Wei Chun, had once been the same—bearing all the pressure of the family alone, protecting her family and younger siblings.

A surge of emotion rose in him. His steps paused, and he somewhat wanted to go take a look.

But Yang Zhou was merely a newcomer, having only just entered to learn the moves. She had no connection with him.

He could not be bothered to meddle in another family's affairs.

He raised his foot again and headed toward the inner rooms.

He had only taken a few steps when angry shouts suddenly came from outside the courtyard. It was Yang Zhou, along with the loud cursing and yelling of others.

"They actually brought the fight to the academy entrance?" Wei He paused, turned around, and walked out of the courtyard.

A few of the other disciples who had been practicing also stopped and followed him out to see what was happening.

Huishan Fist Academy was one of the most famous places in all of Shiqiao Town. Yet someone actually dared cause trouble outside its gates?

On the street outside the courtyard.

Yang Zhou and a half-grown boy were fighting like mad alongside each other against several burly men.

Off to one side lay a thin, weak youth with a bruised and swollen face, barely clinging to life.

The two burly men should have held the advantage, but Yang Zhou and the other boy kept using all kinds of underhanded tricks, leaving them flustered and scrambling.

For a time, the two sides were actually evenly matched.

At that moment, several men happened to arrive from the opposite side of the street.

All of them bore the black marks of the Thief Gang.

The leading man's face turned cold. Just as he was about to roll up his sleeves and join the fight, he saw Wei He and several Huishan Fist disciples standing outside the opposite courtyard, watching the situation.

His expression changed slightly. A companion beside him quickly whispered several words, apparently recognizing Wei He.

"Since Brother Wei is here too, our apologies for disturbing you. We'll leave right away!"

Without another word, the man clasped his fists in salute, stepped forward, grabbed his two companions, and left.

Led by that man, the group quickly vanished into the depths of the alley.

Wei He had not even said a word before he saw that they had already run off.

He was slightly stunned inwardly. He had never expected that, without realizing it, he had gained such great deterrent power.

These Thief Gang fellows looked much like Chen Biao and the others back then—idle hoodlums who loitered around the area. Sometimes they robbed people of money, sometimes they temporarily worked as traffickers. So long as there was profit in it, they would do anything.

Yet now, they ran the moment they saw him?

Wei He suddenly felt somewhat strange. Back when he had not yet taken a master, he had encountered Chen Biao and the other two while carrying money. He had been trembling with fear, terrified in his heart.

Now, faced with people from the Thief Gang again, he did not need to say a single word for them to turn and flee.

Without realizing it, he was no longer as weak as he had once been.

Wei He sighed inwardly.

Yang Zhou hurried over at that moment, clasped her fists, and gave him a deep bow.

"Thank you, Senior Brother Wei."

Wei He shook his head. "I didn't do anything. There's no need to thank me."

He turned and walked toward the academy gate. After a few steps, he paused.

"Practice well, and you won't be bullied again."

Yang Zhou's body trembled at those words. She answered heavily, bowed again, then hurried to her younger brother. Together with the other boy, she picked him up and headed for the medicine shop.

Meanwhile, the Thief Gang men ran wildly for quite some distance before stopping beside a pile of garbage, panting heavily.

"B-Boss, who exactly was that man just now?" one of the men asked between gasps, unable to hide his confusion.

"Huishan Fist only released the news two days ago. Wei He, a core disciple who newly broke through to Second Stage Qi and Blood. Second Stage Qi and Blood..." the boss sighed.

"Don't even think about it. You only need to know that he's a formidable figure. Even if we ambushed him, all of us charging together would only be serving ourselves up on a platter." He was fairly knowledgeable.

With a sigh, he slapped one of his lackeys on the forehead.

"Keep your eyes wide open from now on. Let me teach you something: you need to keep watch over every little movement in these martial arts academies. Otherwise, some new big shot might suddenly appear one day. If you offend one, it'll be a case of certain death with no chance of life."

"These days, a person dying is no different from a dog dying. No one will bury you." He exhaled heavily and pushed his back away from the wall.

"Let's go. Leave those two Yang Zhou siblings alone for now. We'll collect from other families first."

The others looked at one another, none daring to make a sound, before following him away one after another.

Bang!

Wei He punched Old Zheng's forearm. Before he could put full force into it, he turned and swung an elbow, spinning it toward Old Zheng's forehead.

"The movements between this move are too broad. There are too many openings."

With a light shove, Old Zheng deflected Wei He's attack.

The palm he had thrust out suddenly clenched into a fist and punched forward.

"Got you!"

Bang!

Wei He staggered back, another fist mark appearing on his shoulder.

Cough, cough.

He lowered his head and coughed several times, then looked up at Old Zheng with a face full of admiration.

"Teacher truly is formidable!"

"What? Did you think that just because I'm old, I definitely wouldn't be your match?" Zheng Fugui chuckled. "Let me tell you, you little brats are still too green!"

"Now that you've got a little something to you, do you know why you still can't beat this rotten old man?" Master Zheng said with a smile.

"This disciple does not know." Wei He found it strange as well. Master Zheng was neither muscular nor tall, and he did not look heavy, yet the force behind his strikes was exceptionally great.

Wei He could even clearly feel that Master Zheng had not used his full strength. His casual strikes alone carried far more power than Wei He's.

"Little He, compared to the others, you're simply too withdrawn." Zheng Fugui said, "Go out more when you have nothing to do. Interact with more people. While broadening your connections, you can also gain more news and intelligence."

"Teacher means?"

"Position." Zheng Fugui said mildly, "You have some strength now. So do you know where you rank in Feiye City?"

Wei He was immediately speechless. He truly had never paid attention to such things.

"This disciple does not know," he answered honestly.